The Death of a Fallen Star
by Sunkist
Summary: Prophecies that consume Voldemorts attention have led Ginny and Draco to change the written words of destiny-The dead are not dead-The living are not alive. The prophetical child of Harry Potter that will exacerbate evil depends on their strength.
1. Default Chapter

Authors Notes: Hmm…I really hope you guys like this…this is going to be a huge… I mean… HUGE series. I'm kind of hoping to have an effect on ff.net similar to the one Someone the First did. I mean, who hasn't read "Digging the   
Hole, and Climbing back out"? That girl made history, and if you haven't read that incredible fic, oh…you poor sad sheltered little reader, YOU SHOULD. It's incredible. Anyway, now that I've gone on that little tangent "Oh hell, blame the attention deficit disorder." (Robyn – heh.) 

**_Regardless, if you read this chapter, and then come back for more, please tell your friends and followers… I want this to be huge…because, quite honestly, this is going to be a hundred times better than my other stuff. This story is going to become me entire and only purpose for writing on ff.net, so … as you can tell, I'm putting my heart on the line here. I really really hope you enjoy this. Please, email me at Little_Aly@juno.com with questions, comments or any encouragement. And SPREAD THE NEWS! _**

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**_Disclaimer: Draco and Ginny and any other Harry Potter characters do not belong to me, and are all delicate, glorious creations of JKR. _**

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**_Dedication: This is to whoever reads this story and feels something in their heart twinge. I write for you. I write so you are not a reader, but a character, and your very heart flutters with each chapter. If you feel the writing, this is for you. Thank you for helping me along…all of you. Always, Aly._**

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**_Chapter One_**

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Draco Malfoy had lived through too many dangers as it was. After graduating from Hogwarts, and getting lost in a world that still haunted him at late hours of the night he had become a Death Eater. It was beyond his comprehension the type of pain he'd come to accept those four long, painful, years he'd left behind him. 

            He supposed that it was the power that had captured his soul….but no…it was his own naïve desire to finally be on top that destroyed him. Those long nights he spent at Voldemorts feet, bleeding, suffering, begging for mercy through clenched teeth, feeling the blood trickle from his mouth. Those days when all he did was kill. When he'd arrive at desolate gray homes, on freezing gray rainy days, only to twist his nimble fingers around the sturdy wand and listen to people beg and plead for mercy at his feet. The very same way he had to Voldemort, yet…there was nothing. He held the wand directly in their face and destroyed them. He'd wreck the home, and then stab them a few times. Part of him thought that maybe it was because he wanted it to look like a crime scene to the Muggle world, but the other, smarter half knew that it was because the feeling of a knife sinking into soft flesh gave him power, and the blood that rose from the deep wound fed him. He was on top, or so he thought, until he was with Voldemort. 

            His once dazzling white blond hair and piercing blue eyes had become vacant and gray, his hair dirty and askew. Night after night it was the same thing…he would fall to his knees, only to suffer at the hands of his "Master" This was no life. This was hell on earth. He figured that this is what Muggles who worshipped the Devil must feel like….like Satan would give them power, and then only to discover that Satan did not love them, and he only wished to see the m fall in agony. Draco realized this one night, sleeping on the cold concrete floor of his room in the Riddle house. He longed to escape to flee to become the person he so longed, and wished to be. He knew it was too late, too late to escape, too late to try to start over. Someone, someone had to hear him! Someone had to miss him, someone had to love him….someone! Could he really be all alone in this desolate hell? "Oh God," he prayed, a naïve act of an unbeliever, "help me…Lord, oh…this is too much." Draco had never believed in God, and for that very reason, he did not believe in second chances, life was not like that…not simple. 

            Just as his thoughts began to rush through his throbbing head he heard the door above him open, and the thud of Voldemorts black boots descending the stairs pained him. Not again…

"Draco, you sad, sad little maggot. Get up! Dry those pathetic weak tears! Have you no dignity?! No backbone!? GET UP IMMEDIATELY!" Voldemort hissed. 

Draco fought his body to stand. His fragile, legs, stiff with dry blood could barely hold his weight. His muscles screamed out in pain, yet through clenched teeth he stared at him. Limping slightly on his left leg, he readjusted his weight and tried to stand straight. 

"I have a mission for you." he scowled, "I'm sure you'll just love it." 

Draco made no response, just stared. 

"Ah.. a little journey to the past…. I'm sure you'll just adore it. Here." He handed him a piece of paper, with an address written in deep scarlet ink. 

"Go there, and get me the girl." 

"Why?" Draco breathed.

"Don't ask questions fool!" Voldemort screamed, taking out his wand and whispering a curse so low that Draco could not hear it, but when the flaming pain hit him he knew it was an unforgivable one. 

Draco screamed on the floor, desperately clutching his temples. Finally, Voldemort ended it, and he weakly stood up. 

"Now…I will tell you." he said. "This girl is a key item in my rise to power, and Potters end. That stupid prophecy can be broken…and I think this girls blood with taint it all." 

"She will die?" 

"Don't be an idiot Draco, you're starting to remind me of that rat Pettigrew." Voldemort hissed. "Now go." 

~~~~~~

            The Weasley home was alive with people and Ginny Weasley stood admist it all. Her long, fiery, brilliant, red hair floated down to her lower back in a halo of waves. She wore a sleeveless v-necked white tank top, and a knee high black skirt. Today was Ron's birthday and she had never been so thrilled. She had been away at college, studying, learning, and experiencing so much that she had been naïve to at Hogwarts and home. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and carried out the large chocolate cake bewitched with colorchanging icing. She grinned and sat it before her brother as the room began singing 'Happy Birthday.' Fred and George creating inappropriate verses until receiving a glare from a very not amused Mrs. Weasley. Harry, Hermione, and Robyn had joined to help Ron celebrate. Robyn and Ron had been engaged for just three months, and Robyn was already a very large part of the family. She had warm chocolate eyes, and short brown hair that curled under at her chin, she was gorgeous, and it was very apparent that no one had ever loved Ron so dearly. Harry and Hermione had been married for just under a year, and Ginny couldn't help but smile as she looked at Fred's wife, Angelina, her tummy just barely swelling with the promise of a new baby to the family. Life was coming together for everyone, she could just feel it. 

            After the dishes were done, the guests had retreated to their bedrooms, and Ron and Robyn had left on a little walk, Ginny lay resolutely on her bed, still in her party outfit, but feeling lonely. Everyone had a match in her family, but her. However, she had been studying in Spain and Italy, and she loved sitting in the small village cafes with the warm sun shining down on her table, as she did her studies. Life was well for her too, but just…something was missing. 

~~~

            Draco slid up the stairs, under the cover of an invisibility cloak, and stealthily found his way to Ginny's room. Inching his way in through the slightly opened door he saw her, laying there in the dark, the moonlight illuminating her face. Her green eyes glittering, her long wavy red hair laying around her frame, and one corner of her skirt was twisted up, revealing her upper leg. She looked gorgeous. Not the skinny little Weasley he had hated so many years ago. 

            He slid in inch by inch until he was finally in the room, and he removed his cloak. Ginny jolted up and opened her mouth, about to scream. He rushed over, covered her mouth and stared into her eyes. 

"Don't scream." He whispered. He took out his wand and tapped her forehead lightly. In an instant, she was out like a light. He picked up her motionless body and covered the two of them with his invisibility cloak. He returned downstairs, and out the door onto his broom. He cradled her in his arms the entire journey home. Her eyelids seemed peacefully sleeping, her long black lashes sleepily resting on her cheeks. The wind was biting cold, and he pulled her closer to him as they approached the Riddle house. He entered through the front door, still in the cloak. It was one a.m. He reluctantly carried her to Voldemort. Silently praying she would not be killed. 

            "Ah, my son…you have done well. Bring me the girl." He said. 

            Draco silently brought her to him, and lay her on the sacrificing table. Her long red hair hanging off the edges, beautifully. Voldemort leaned close to her soft pink lips and blew a cold breath on her. Her eyes opened, and she screamed…the loudest, most piercing, most devastating scream Draco had ever heard. Voldemort silenced her immediately, and with a switch of the wand he had her hands and legs pinned to the table. 

"Now..Ms. Weasley. I have questions that need answers, if you fail to supply me with an answer, I torture you. Its just that simple. Do we understand?" he hissed, touching her face. 

She pulled her face from him. He took her delicate face in his cold, rough grasp and said it again. "Do we understand!" he yelled. 

She weakly shook her head. 

"Leave Draco." He hissed. 

Draco did not move. "You are not going to kill her?" 

"Not yet, not that it should matter to you regardless." Voldemort laughed. 

"Do not harm her, please." Draco said, ashamed. 

"Leave Fool. If you dare leave your cell in the basement tonight, she will die slowly and painfully. Understood?" 

"Must you harm her?" 

"Now Draco!" 

Draco turned and left to the basement. If only Voldemort did not have so many followers. They would surely report directly to him if he left. He trudged down the old, worn out wooden steps and sank onto his mattress. He closed his eyes tightly.  Suddenly, Ginny's piercing screams rang throughout the house…he wished for them to end, but they continued that way for hours. Draco clenched his eyes shut and prayed…but her screams were endless, until her voice grew weak and hoarse. Draco's eyes grew maliciously heavy as he fought himself to stay awake. What was wrong with him? Did he have feelings for Ginny? Had he gone soft….oh his nightmare was going to get much worse. How did he escape? 

            When Draco arose, the pink of the early sunrise shone through his one thin window towards the very ceiling of the basement, the glass was frosted, and he wondered how Ginny was, and he rubbed his arms together for warmth.

            He did not see her for days, but he heard her upstairs, meddling around the kitchen, and then screaming during the nights. On the third day, he continued to hear her light footsteps throughout the home, but she stopped screaming during the night. He prayed constantly, he wished nothing more than to be with her, to be holding her, comforting her throughout the pain, but he could not, he was trapped in his dark, damp cell until Voldemort needed him again. 

            The door swung open and Voldemort came down the wooden steps heavily. He smirked as he approached Draco's cell.

            "Your Ginny is just fine, fool , you do not have to pretend to be so nonchalant, don't you remember that I know your thoughts?" He laughed. 

            "However,  I am growing weaker by the day, I need fresh blood….so…I have a mission for you. I need Unicorn blood, and a body to kill myself, if you are feeling generous you will bring me someone scrawny…after all, the thin ones are so much easier to kill." He smiled, an unsettling grin.

            "Now, heres the address, I want the child this time. The very young babe."

            "A baby?" Draco whispered fearfully. 

            "HAVE YOU GONE SOFT?!" Voldemort shrilled. "If this Weasley is causing you to fail at your tasks than I will exterminate her at my leisure before your very eyes. Now, BRING ME THE BABE!" 

            "I'm sorry." he said looking down. 

            "If only your father was aware of this…..weakness…the human heart is such a foolish thing. Oh Draco, do not let it get you…remember…power, strength…" Voldemort said retreating up the stairs in a slow determined pace.

            Draco resolutely turned to the door, and clenched the address in his hand…this was beyond evil. It was either Ginny's life, or the childs. 

~~~~~


	2. Chapter two - She's got a pretty smile

Authors Notes: So…you like it so far?If you absolutely hate it, just hang in there for a few more chapters…my writing greatly improves as the story unfolds. Heh. What can I say? Work is the devil…just thought you would all like to know. It keeps me from writing. Anyway! Back to the story, and I'd just like to thank my three loyal reviewers….please hang in there. I promise…this will get better. 

**_Disclaimer: The personalities are mine, not the names. Hmm… I AM schizophrenic!_**

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**_Chapter Two _**

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**_            "She's so high, high above me, she's so lovely. She's so high, like Cleopatra, Joan of Ark, or Aphrodite." _**

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            Ginny Weasley had never been so miserable in her life. During the long days she cleaned, she answered any one of the many Death Eaters living within the homes every command. She hated it. The evil, yet respected men that lived here daily, carrying out Voldemorts tasks, helping him day by slow day grow stronger in power. By night, she was tortured for answers to questions she pretended to not know about. And that rat Draco! Stealing her from her very home, and murdering so many. She hated it here, she prayed nightly to be rescued, and she had tried to escape six times within these three tortuous days. Just this morning, as all the Death Eaters sat in the grandiose living room sipping black black coffee she brought them discussing the morning paper she overheard the news of Angelina and Fred's baby. 

            "Yes! Ms. Weasley, you dear, are an Aunt." One man grinned, touching the back of her leg. She snapped away from him, and inched nearer to the paper. Voldemort, detecting that she was eager to know more handed her the paper and asked her to read it aloud. Ginny set down the coffee tray and read the article aloud. 

"Today, in The Burrow the Weasley family was blessed with a miracle. A tiny baby girl named Summer Virginia Weasley arrived at 4:13 am this morning, her proud parents Fred and Angelina Weasley made no real comment to our birth reporters except that her middle name was given to her in memory of his lost sister, captured from her home just four days prior. Visits or Congratulations to this happy couple can be attained by the following address." Ginny's face fell downcast. She had ruined their happy day. She had ruined it all…

            ~~~

            Draco gazed down at the address before him…oh please…Lord, please…no. He whispered a prayer over and over, a naïve act of an unbeliever, but if there was a God, oh please…not ……no….

            ~~~

            "And you two wonder why I said you weren't allowed to be alone with Summer!" Angelina laughed, swatting at Fred and George who had bewitched everything in her perfect, spotless kitchen to hover inches above the ground. 

            "Aw, come off it 'Lina, the baby loves it." George said, leaning down and kissing her gentle, round, warm, welcoming tanned face.

            "Thank you for the kiss, George, but I know how to tell the difference between my husband and his identical brother." Angelina laughed from somewhere deep inside and scooped Summer up into her strong arms. 

            "I know you can tell, I've just grown rather fond of your lips." George smirked, instinctively dodging a curse Fred was, no doubt, launching at him from behind. Sure enough, a purple spark lit up the room and bounced around a few plates before sailing out the open window. 

            "I feel sorry for who that one hits." Fred said, looking after it, and following Angelina upstairs to tuck in their precious child. 

            Summer Virginia Weasley was a gorgeous child with brilliant, black hair that sparked with energy. She also had huge, ice blue eyes chilling to stare at but an admirable glance would adore them. She already had begun to exemplify the traits of a Weasley. She was wild, even for a newborn. She never ceased moving and small dazzling stars flickered at her fingertips when she cried. Yet now, in the protective strong arms of her father and mother she cooed contently and eased into her cool blanket with sleep pulling at her feisty eyes.

            "She's incredible." Fred said, with pride, leaning down to touch her soft cheek with his finger that seemed huge next to her delicate new frame. 

            Angelina hummed warmly next to him, his arm laying lovingly across her shoulders. She leaned against him gently, simply enjoying the utter bliss of having an infant that was theirs. A walking symbol of their endless love for one another. Summer was Angelina and Fred's heart - walking around outside of themselves. 

            ~~

            Draco arose the next morning in the pitch black hotel room. He recollected his thoughts, and then laid heavily back on his pillow, punching the bed in frustration. The bottle of alcohol next to the bed was half empty and the twisted sheets imprisoning him merely provided that he had been tossing in his sleep. Could he do this?? Could he kill an innocent child who had done nothing but entered this world? He reached for the bottle, but pulled his hand back. He enjoyed the sullen comfort  of the darkness, after all, he needed to think and the darkness didn't ask questions, or employ conversation - the darkness was nothing but emptiness and the hallow feeling that ached and ate at him from his very bones, welcoming the darkness with an unsettling ease.

            He sat on the edge of his bed, dark rings under his weary eyes. He resembled a scared child, cradling his knees to his chest for support. He shook with conviction, but knew no air. He could not escape what lay at his feet. Sweat emitted from his pores, even though his was frighteningly cold. His back lay slumped in a disfigured position as he hugged his legs closer to him. His skin looked as if it was clinging tightly to his ribs, as you could count all of them, jutting painfully out with a demanding unease.  Draco was losing it. His heart was pounding so heavily he wondered whether or not he could possibly make himself do this. He fought hard against his father's voice in the back of his mind, yelling at him, beating him with a fierce evil, and instructing him to do whatever it was that Voldemort so willed. Draco slid off the bed onto the floor and clasped his hands together, laying his ice cold, sweating forehead on his knees, and he did the only thing he could think of…pray…

            It's funny how God always hears our prayers, even when we do not deserve his attention, or respect. As Draco recognized this, he began sobbing, heavy, heaving sobs that shook his shoulders so hard he felt red hot needles all over his back. 

            "Help me…." he wept. "Oh…God, I know what I am doing is wrong… help me. Free me from this…be with Ginny…Oh God." He wept until he could hurt no longer, and then, a warm peace settled over him, and his shoulders ceased, and his tears were silenced. He would not kill the child. 

            ~~

            "Who's Grandpa's little angel? Who?" Arthur Weasley cooed at his giggling granddaughter. His dirty red hair was now thinning away, revealing a shiny bald spot that his sons never let him forget. His warm blue eyes met the cold piercing stare of his grandaughter as he spun her around and around. 

            "Arthur, will you watch it!" Mrs. Weasley snapped, then grinned sheepishly noticing the baby in his hands. "You're going to be just spoiled rotten." She smiled. "Just rotten." 

            "Hey! I want to see that kid for awhile." A familiar voice echoed behind them. There stood Harry Potter; the young child they had almost raised. His black hair still fluttering above his glasses. He had grown and was now a chisled young man. He beamed and took long strides to the infant, taking her lovingly into his muscular arms, now delicate with the child between them. 

            "Harry!" Mrs. Weasley cried, inching on her very tiptoes to reach up and hug him tightly. "We've missed you! How's Hermione, dear?"

            "I'm splendid." Said a welcoming voice from the doorway. Hermione Potter smiled walking into the kitchen, her warm cinnamon hair and eyes reflecting in the daylight. "How are you Mr. and Mrs. Weasley?" 

            "Oh…Ginny…she just has us all a mess. But, I figure the authorities are right. Ginny's a free spirit, she could have just left." Mrs. Weasley said doubtfully, as if attempting to convince herself. "I just pray she's not in any pain." 

            "Of course." Hermione said hugging her warmly. 

            "Here you guys, help me set the table." Mr. Weasley implored, bringing them outside. The air was fresh and crisp with a welcoming summer evening. The sky now deepening into a darker shade of blue, was spanless. Fireflies has just begun to appear, flittering playfully above the Garden Gnomes before retreating to their own private business. Hermione, Harry, and Ron followed Mr. Weasley around the huge table placing forks, spoons, and sherbet dishes at every place setting. Hermione and Ron paused thoughtfully at where Ginny's place usually was. The now vacant setting was now becoming a painful reminder of her absence. Ron blew out a heavy breath loaded with anxiety. 

            "Wherever you are….you come home to us." he smiled, touching the tablecloth for an instant. 

~~~~

            "I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Ginny screamed as she was cornered by Voldemort. 

            "Silence!" he shrieked, and the house trembled on its foundation before stilling evilly. 

            "First you demand me to talk then you demand silence. Make up your damn mind." Ginny said bitterly. 

            His fingers twisted around his wand at his side, and Ginny fell silent. 

            "Listen, I don't know anything. I just want to go home to my family." She begged. 

            "What's Potter doing for a career nowadays?" he spat at her. 

            "I told you. I haven't talked to Harry since Hogwarts. I don't know!" she lied. 

            "Ms. Weasley, you're a terrible liar. I know for fact that he is constantly at the Weasley residence. 

            "I've been away at school, and even so, he only talks to Ron!" she screamed. 

            "Fool." He whispered, before raising his hand and allowing it to fall across her face with a resounding crack. She winced and bit down  on her lower lip until she felt blood in her mouth, but at least she did not give him the enjoyment of hearing her cry out in pain.

            He retreated down the stairs jerking her the entire time. He was now pulling her deep into the heart of the Riddle mansion. Then down crooked dark steps into a wet, cold, dank basement. It's only furnishing's were dozens of boxes, a pail with a thin line of rancid water residing at the dregs and a filthy mattress. Chains and bloodied knives lay near it. Ginny shuddered with fear. She had just walked into hell. 

            "This is your new residence until Draco returns. Enjoy." He smirked, gliding up the stairs. 

            She stepped cautiously about the room, gingerly approaching the mattress. She mumbled a quiet charm and cleaned the bed. She sat on the pure white sheets, looking almost angelic in the dark room and pulled her knees to her chest, resting her head on top of them. Her long wavy red hair fell around her waist and arms, almost shielding her from whatever was lurking in the shadows…and in the future. 

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	3. Chapter Three - why I will never trust y...

Authors Notes: Heh…Chapter Three….this is where my writing actually strats to become worth reading…and you know…Robyn is always checking my grammar and crap, which I guess makes it better. Heh. So how do you all like it? It's about to get ugly….

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**_Chapter Three_**

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**_            "Time, sometimes time just slips away. And you're left with yesterday, left with the memories, and I…I'll always think of you and smile, and be happy for the time, I had you with me. Though we go our separate ways. I won't forget so don't forget the memories we made, please remember." _**

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            Harry and Hermione had just finished their creamy, homemade blueberry sherbet and now were leaning peacefully against the counter in the kitchen filled with the Weasley's. They were all there, laughing, carrying on, and passing Summer from relative to relative. All crammed in the kitchen like that was a refreshing burst of contentment for Harry, who had never known occasions like this when he was a child, but Summer….Summer would know what family really meant…and he thanked God for it. 

            Hermione reached over and squeezed Harry's hand, understanding what he was thinking as she looked about the room. The Weasley's were all so different and oh so the same. Percy and his immaculate hair and dress outfit. The twins, shabby hair, and gorgeous eyes to match their wicked smiles that always left a hint of mischievous undertones. Charlie and Bill, the trailblazers, the ones who had ambition and ideas to accomplish whatever lay before them. Ron, dedicated, good natured Ron ….a short temper, but a kind heart to make up for it. Yet the free spirit was missing, the dreaming piece of the puzzle had left the table…possibly for good, and her spirit was needed tonight. 

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            Draco approached the open kitchen window slowly. His heart still pounding. His cold eyes forced open, and his clenched legs fighting his body to walk. He had been wondering how he was going to get the child, and he decided on a method that would not harm the child or the others. He whispered a spell under his breath and shot the spark directly into the busy kitchen. 

            "Retificculus!" he shouted, and then entered. Everyone was frozen exactly as they had been hit. From the open laughing mouths and smiling warm faces, Draco noticed that George had just finished a joke, and the entire room was laughing whole-heartedly whenever his spell stilled them all. He enjoyed the surreal atmosphere of all their shining faces. He wished to stay in their joyous presence and ask them if they could teach him how to feel, how to know joy, and how to live again. He walked from frozen face to frozen face, loving each of them, and admiring their blissful expressions of happiness. Slowly, he made his way to Summer, her glittering eyes and arms outstretched in a joyous shrill of laughter. He pulled her into his arms, and with great and slow reluctance, he left the Burrow. He was only 100 feet from the home when he turned around to unfreeze them. Just as he heard their laughter ring out through the hills of the country again, he heard the most terrifying noise he would ever know, and one he could never….ever…..ever…..forget. 

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            The night was growing darker by the minute, and Ginny charmed the bed four more times before she was convinced that it was safe and sanitary to sleep on. Her head fell back on the pillow lightly, despite the fact that her mind was exploding with thoughts. She felt something hard, and reached under the pillow. She saw a dark red book, dirty with use, and worn with work, but still, charming. 

            She opened it somewhere near the middle and read….

            _The days are colder still….four murders today….Voldemort suspects that I am becoming stronger than him, so he beats me senseless, I suppose that explains the bloodied edges of the page….I cannot escape…but I have a strong desire to live…all those years at Hogwarts,…all the hate,  it was just a pretense. I don't want to live this way, I didn't ask for this life…but with no real friends, or any reason to live…what do I have left but this book?_

_            Taking an even deeper plunge into Draco's heart she flipped a few more pages. _

            _Many nights I sit here, debating death. Why not? you ask…. _

_I 'm a coward I suppose, but regardless… I want the power, with power, you can overlook the loss of love and cover up the pain with the respect that you are given. At least when I lie to myself I sound convincing. _

_            Ginny's heart pounded heavily as she read page after page….with each word she began to understand Draco, and recognize that he really was not an evil servant, but a trapped, tortured killer with nothing to lose but blood, and even that meant nothing. _

            _Much to write today. Father is dead. Voldemort killed him early this morning… I heard the low roar  yell of him, then a thud as his body hit the floor.  I shudder, knowing that his lifeless body is merely a floor above me. All I can gather from the death is that they were arguing over the prophecy again…Harry Potter's child will kill him….but…..what….I don't know. Father questioned the Divinator and Voldmeort killed him….I am officially alone…._

_            Killed the Bournes today. Pleasant couple really, full of life. Their daughter Susan was there, but… I had to kill her as well. Despite the fact that she and I graduated at the same time. Hufflepuff….heh….friendly, but poor fighters. _

_            Captured Ginny Weasley. According to Voldemort she is a precious piece to the prophecy, but I just cannot figure out how. She is just as I remembered her from school. Youthful, full of life, spirit, and spunk, she's just vibrant with joy…I pity her. All joy is captured in this hell's weak frame…..I fear what he will do to her, I remember how I used to admire her from afar in my Hogwarts days…but she was always following Harry, Ron, and Granger around…water under the bridge, but mind my word, journal, I will not let him hurt her, not again. _

            She shut the book, tears pouring from her radiant green eyes. How could he be so human? She pitied him with the deepest sympathy. Her heart ached. 

            "Oh…you poor thing…." She whispered, tucking the book safely under his pillow. She leaned her head back down and smelled the cool scent of him. She wondered how many nights his head had rested on this very spot, eyes closed, lips together thoughtfully….she wondered if he ever got lonely down here…in the cold…in the dark….there was so much more to Draco then a name…beneath that shell…

~~~~

            The Weasley home exploded with a deafening crash. Stones and bricks were sailing far above and ahead of Draco's hurried steps. He turned, mortified at the sight that lay before him. Smoke and fire were rising from the rubble and a red glitter of dust rose from the center. He sheltered Summer near a tree and rushed back towards the home….. 

            _Dear Lord, don't let me be too late._

            He felt his legs screaming in protest to his movements but he could not stop, he threw rock after rock and called out for them but the huge cottage bricks were impossible to move by himself. He had no wand, but immense dark arts magic….so he lifted a few by levitation before he was too tired to move anymore. He continued digging until his fingers were bleeding heavily and his chest heaved for oxygen. Then, he saw a sight that would, for eternity, be etched in his brain. 

            Ron Weasley's dead vacant eyes stared at him….accusingly. His fiery red hair swept around his eyes with the smoke, his mouth was open in an ' o ' of horror and his skin was turning a grey, dulling shade, almost erasing his freckles. Blood trickled from his mouth and down onto his chest. Draco heaved and carried his body from the rubble onto the yard. Ron's hallow eyes stared at him full of blame. 

            _Ron_

            "I did not do this!" Draco shouted, and he whispered those words over and over again as he returned to digging through the debris. His muscles felt aflame, and soon his back and legs were begging for him to cease as he carried out body after body…

            _Charlie_

_            Bill_

_            Percy _

_            He felt himself falling farther and farther into an endless abyss of grief…these people he barely knew…but greatly loved…..Then the worst hit him. Fred and Angelina had died so suddenly his counter charm to unfreeze them had barely worn off. Therefore, they lay next to one another…lifeless, and chillingly still….with huge grinning smiles on their faces. He shuddered as he gazed into their happy, vacant faces…how terrible….what was this? How had this happened? They were clinging to one another…still laughing….just barely unfroze_

0n when the house collapsed….it was the most disturbing and chilling vision he'd ever seen.

            _Fred _

_            Angelina_

_            George_

_            He closed his eyes as he gently lifted the tiny frame of Mrs. Weasley into his arms. She looked horrified and stoic, all at the same time. Her husbands body was another frightening sight. His body was stiff, and rigid, but his body was in the lunging position, as if to shield his children from the blow….blood ran from him and Draco 's heart fell to his knees with Mr. Weasley's heroic stance. _

            _Mr. Weasley_

_            Mrs. Weasley_

_            Then….there they were…. Hermione and Harry Potter. Her body was still stiff, as if the curse had not even hit her and she was still frozen. Harry's vacant green eyes, startled Draco, and then he truly wept….for the deaths and for what was to come. Because with Harry Potter and Hermione dead…no child was to be born….and the prophecy was destroyed….the most dark, and terrifying days were ahead - allowing Voldemort to kill freely once more with no question. The Divinator he lived by had told him that Harry Potter's son would be his downfall….but…now…there was nothing at all holding him back. No one…not even Harry. Oh….help us…Draco dropped his head and whispered a silent prayer for all of those who were about to live through the dark days ahead……._

 ~~~~

            He laid the bodies of Hermione and Harry side by side. His heart wrenched at their cold frozen faces, still jubilant with laughter. They hadn't even had time to run, they looked as if they were still frozen when it hit. He walked over to Summer and disapparated back to the Riddle mansion…eyes clenched shut….his entire body was on fire and his starved muscles begged for rest, yet….he continued on…steadily, and mournfully. 

            He appeared downstairs, in the basement where he slept and was ……beaten. He approached his bed, wanting a few minutes alone with Summer before handing her pure body over to the hands of hell. As he neared the bed he spotted Ginny Weasley, and he feared she was dead. A box was at the foot of the bed and he placed his pillow snuggly in it, creating a tiny bed for Summer and laying her within it before moving up ….with chilling apprehension, preparing himself to see the dead, pale and cold body of Ginny…

~~~~

            She felt his ice cold fingers on her neck, checking for a pulse and she laughed. A joyful giggle that seemed to warm the dank dungeon around them. 

            "I'm quite alive, Draco." She said, sitting up, and actually smiling. Draco looked her over, assessing how badly she must have been beaten, but…despite the black bruises and scars on her legs she looked…..like a dream. Long, toned legs, a bright smile, kinky curls that were still cascading around her as if she was still sixteen, and brilliant emerald eyes that seemed to never lose their luster. He fought an intense desire to pull her into his arms and promise her that no pain would come to her. 

            "You look petrified, and you're so cold…come here." she said delicately pulling him towards her. His body tensed in refusal…. 

            She looked at him - hurt. "Draco, I mean you no harm. I just...wanted to help you." 

            "I can't…Ginny….something terrible has happened." 

~~~~

            "Draco is home.. I feel his presence."  Voldemort hissed. 

~~~~

            Draco stood up - alert and scared. 

            "I'll return shortly, whatever you do…don't follow me." he warned. 

            As Draco turned to leave, Ginny took him in. He looked tired, but not defeated, for despite his beatings and scars, he was still muscular and firm, just as cold looking as he had been when they were at Hogwarts, white blond hair, striking - fierce blue eyes that reached right into a soul and cooled it, and as he started stoically up the stairs she couldn't help but follow him with her eyes, and feel something in her heart morph….

~~~~


	4. Chapter four - Everything changes, it's ...

**_Authors Notes: AH! I had the worst day at work today. I hate nitwit customers. Nevermind that, I hate Subway in general. Anyway. This story is developing quite nicely if I do say so myself. So, here goes the next chapter. Are you all still telling everyone you know? And hey, how do YOU think it's going? _**

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**_Thanks to my beta…Robyn!…lol….go figure….the only reason this story makes any sense or has any coherence is because of her. She really is a genius writer, she's just too lazy to write any of her own stuff, she fixes all of my random mistakes. "Oh hell, blame the A.d.d"  Much love to ya Rob. ; ) _**

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**_Dedication:This chapter goes out to all of those loyal reviewers who stick with me. I love all of you, you keep me writing. _**

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**_Chapter Four_**

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**_            "I try to climb your steps, I try to chase you down, I try to see how low I can get down to the ground. I try to earn my way, I try to tame this mind, you better believe that I am, trying to beat this." _**

- **_lifehouse_**

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            "Draco, pleased to see you've succeeded." Voldemort seethed. 

            "The house….that was…" 

            "My handiwork of course." He smiled broadly. "Who all did I take care of?"  he then implored. 

            Draco felt like vomiting. "All of them…" he said, blood as hot as fire running towards his face. He clenched his fists at his sides tightly. 

"Surely not….surely you jest…surely…this is…." He said, nearing him with anxious anticipation. 

"Harry Potter….as well as Hermione." Draco said, forcing himself to smile. "Congratulations Sir." 

"Not…are you certain?" 

"No room to question…he is as dead and lifeless as the others…already cold." 

Voldemort gleamed and thrust his fist towards the ceiling. "AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!" 

he screamed, low and deadly ringing throughout the old, hallow, haunted walls.

"Now!!! I reign!" he screamed and his followers quickly fled into the room. Shock and disbelief etched on their faces. 

"Master." Draco yelled, grasping Voldemort's arm tightly. "I must retreat to bed. I'm exhausted at the work." 

"Very well. I must inform you that I have placed the Weasley down there. Have your way with her…she is no longer of any importance…Potter is gone!" he cried, turning to his followers in a rallying scream. 

"Draco!" he said turning and whispering in his ear…chilling him deeper. "You shall sit at my side, helping me rise in power…you shall be great, just as promised my most trusted and important follower! The streets will bleed for you!" he whispered with poison. "And as for the girl…she is just your first reward…however, I want her dead by morning….she's yours for only one night….make it count." He hissed, laughing in his ear. 

Draco wanted to kill him…right in front of all of them, yet he was already devising a plan…._play your cards correctly…..he forced a smirk. _

"It will be." He said, and retreated downstairs again….where Ginny sat, waiting in fear of the news. 

"Ginny." He said delicately… "I hate to tell you what I am about to say."  He noticed  Summer, asleep in Ginny's gentle arms, Ginny gazing down at her in awe and love, with the warmth of a mother in her eyes. As Draco neared them, his entire body eased…she sat with her legs Indian style, gently rocking the slumbering child. Ginny wore a white dress shirt, obviously given to her out of pity from one of the men upstairs. She had rolled up the sleeves, and even still it was a size too large. She had haphazardly buttoned the silver buttons and stains from her beatings and torture tainted the pure white cloth. She somehow …probably some clever charmwork of her own….somehow had retrieved denim jeans, comfortably hugging her legs - most likely the only sense of warmth she would feel in the home. She looked up at him, innocently, genuinely, and peaceful. Draco could not explain her smile, her warmth, her grace. How on earth she could manage to put on a smile despite her situation was beyond him, all Draco knew was that she inspired him, and he wanted to free her from the hell that was at her destiny's door. 

            "Here." Draco said, taking Summer from Ginny's arms and insisting that she lay back, and try to rest. After she had lain softly back he handed her the child once more, and took his pillow and laid on the floor across the room. In the dim moonlight, she saw his scared face, and she wanted him to be with her. 

            "Draco, you honestly think I'm going to harm you, don't you?" she called out in the darkness.

            "Of course not." he said, sitting up.

            "Why are you trying to get away from me?" she asked. 

            "I'm sorry. I was trying to be… respectful."  she looked into his eyes and he diverted them with guilt.  She laid the sleeping baby in the soft box of pillows and sat up. 

            "Come here." she demanded, and he walked slowly towards her, sitting at her feet, his head level with her knees. 

            "Tell me what it is you are hiding." She said, grabbing his chin lightly, forcing him to look into her eyes. 

            "Ginny." He whispered, laying his hand on hers. "What would you do if I told you that today…every last member of your family, including Angelina, Harry, and Hermione…..died." 

            She clutched his hand tighter… "No." she said, tears flooding her eyes immediately. 

            "I'm so sorry." 

            "NO!" she screamed. "You did this! I know you did!" 

            "No, Ginny never." 

            "Why were you there!?" 

            "To get Summer." He explained. 

            "To STEAL Summer!" she screamed, and had the Death Eaters and Voldemort not been upstairs celebrating loudly they would have heard her. 

            "I thought you changed, Malfoy! I even trusted you for a while, but you…" she spat, "are the same….revolting sewer rat I knew at Hogwarts!" 

            "No, Ginny, I did nothing to them! Voldemort cursed the home, they were all crushed." 

            "You work for him!!! You watch and help him kill! Do you think that makes you the better person!?" she yelled, standing up and pushing him. 

            "Ginny, please." He said calmly, standing up and holding her arms at her side. 

            "You killed everyone and everything I've ever known! I hate you! I hate you, Malfoy!" she lifted her hands in anger, and hit him, profusely with feeling and soul she beat him until his arms began to swell and his nose bled down his shirt. She threw him up against the walls, then eventually on the floor where she hit him, over and over and over again. He did not cry out, or fight back. Her emotion was worthy and he was willing to take it, for her sake. 

            "I hate you!" she screamed. "I …..hhhhate …..you." she whispered finally, now engulfed in tears, she crawled off of him and wept, pulling her knees close to her chest and rocking back and forth with each heaving sob.

            He scooped her up cautiously, and held her between his arms like an infant. He turned and sat down on the bed, Ginny in his lap, weeping. He cradled her lovingly, but she struggled on, sobbing, and pounding his chest on occasion. It then occurred to Draco that he had to do something…

            Draco placed Summer in Ginny's weak, weary arms, and cradled Ginny in his own, then…as he placed important belongings in his pockets…with a swift kick he opened the cellar door and took the cement steps up to the yard, where he fled. 

            The crisp night air swirled around the three of them, and each cradled the other. Ginny still unaware of her location, but perhaps that was because she no longer cared, just wished to walk on with no regrets or purpose or meaning, just leave and never ever look back. She continued to weep softly into his chest but he walked on, into the dark forest behind the mansion, and he walked, and walked and walked. The rich, black soil beneath his heavy footsteps prodded him onward as the cool night air swept his white blonde hair from his head, the wind reaching him deeply, and the warm night air offering a new tomorrow. 

            The forest seemed to grow only deeper and only darker as the hours increased. Soon, Ginny began to walk on her own, no longer blaming Draco for the deaths, but still mourning in a tormenting silence beside him. Summer slept gently in her arms as they pushed onward.  She kept stealing glances at him, but he would not focus on anything other than what lie directly before him. His heart ached, but he knew the importance of getting Ginny as far away from the home as possible.

 They walked until early hours, when the navy sky eases subtly into a lighter blue and the haze of the morning begins the twist and dance through the sleeping trees. Finally, Draco looked over at Ginny, her humble green eyes admiring the very early hours of the morning, as she held Summer against her. Her kinky waves were now pulled back loosely with a piece of twine, and Draco restrained himself from reaching out to brush her cheek. As morning rose, so did the promise of another day…but where from here?

****

**_~~~~~~~~_**

            Morning was now in full blossom, the sunlight now trickling in through the lush greenery overhead, lighting the path for all the inhabitants of the deep forest. All the lush vegetation flooded over the narrow path they were aimlessly following and soon, the mind began to separate the blurred visions of greens and sunlight into intricate flowers and animals and scenes. 

            "Draco?" Ginny said, stopping and turning him so he would face her - eye to eye. 

            "Yes." He responded; his voice involuntarily rough. He prepared himself for the huge apology and tears. 

            "We have to stop. Summer needs food." She said with emptiness. 

            "Okay." He answered, but it appeared to him that what his answer was didn't matter anyway, because Ginny had already seated herself on a rock and was racking her brain for a charm for infant nutrition. So, he sat down on a nearby rock and thought to himself. How could they feed her? Soon enough they would surely need their own sustenance. 

            "Oh!" Ginny said, smiling. She pulled out her wand and positioned in her hand with a light grace, saying clearly: "Stravae, e nullificateo!" Her wand danced gently, but suddenly a crystal bottle appeared in her hand, and she dropped her wand in shock. 

            "It worked." Draco said, scooping her wand up from the forest floor. "How did you do that?" 

            "Well, don't give me too much credit. I remember working with a scientist who used this charm to sustain a malnourished seal. I know it sounds dumb." She continued, softly laughing at Draco's amused expression. "…but it's true. It's actually a formula - not just a spell for pushing off hunger." She smiled weakly. 

            "You're so brilliant it's scary."  He whispered, leaning back against a tree. 

            "I imagine you're exhausted. We've been walking all night."

            "We've gone very very far. I guarantee it.  I just wish I had my broom." He said. "Last night, I just knew that I couldn't get you and Summer on a broom without attracting attention." 

            "A good summoning charm would solve that." Ginny said, tickling Summer's nose. 

            "I hated Moody. I never learned that one. Anyway…" he mumbled.

            "What? I didn't catch the last thing you said." 

            "I…I failed Charms."  Draco admitted quietly. 

            "Haha!" Ginny richly laughed. 

            "Well, I was doing more important things." He sneered as he had in his youth. 

            "Yeah." Ginny replied with sarcasm. 

            "I was!" 

            "Yeah, and I really wanted to go to the Yule Ball with Neville." 

            "I was doing more important…stuff." He stumbled over his words. 

            "By 'doing more important things' you mean you were doing Pansy Parkinson, right?" Ginny smirked. 

            "Hey!" Draco said, sitting up straight and looking positively offended. 

            She looked at him with disbelief. 

            "Well, yeah." Draco answered, backing down. The two laughed heartily. 

            "Anyway." Ginny said. "Hold Summer for me." 

            Draco took the infant into his hands and noticed immediately why Ginny rarely let go of her. Summer nestled close to his chest and filled him with such a large sense of love he held her tighter against him. Out of all the bad in the world, God had still left so much good. 

            "Accio Broom of Malfoy!" she shouted clearly into the air, holding her wand poised above her head. 

            The birds continued singing, the stream continued to talk, and the animals still scurried about, for an entire mocking two minutes…..then……

            **_BAM!The broom stick came whizzing through the trees faster than anything either had ever seen, yet when it neared them it came cracking down upon Draco, hitting him square in the back of his head. She smirked at Draco. _**

            "Ready?" 

~~~~~

            "What do you mean they're gone?" Voldemort asked. 

            "Well, sir they are no longer there. Not the child, or Malfoy's son, or that enticing red-haired girl." 

            "Stop drooling on yourself Barty." Voldemort said fiercely. 

            Barty Crouch's fair hair and light skin reflected painfully in Voldemort's eyes, and he stood straighter with determination. 

            "Master, do you believe it really matters? Potter is dead, Master. Just listen to how it sounds! Potter is dead! Potter is dead!" Barty said with joyous spite, continuing, "Master, the prophecy is broken. Malfoy is no longer needed, for all of your followers from ALL areas are now relocating here, this very day! The girl…the baby….all of them! Useless! The Prophecy is dead!" 

            Voldemort smirked and thought quietly, then spoke softly, with decision. 

            "You're very right. Find me that Divinator, I need his assistance again." 

            "Yes, Master. Right away." 

            "Oh, and Barty?"

            "Yes, Master?"

            "Please, make sure that everyone will be here tonight….for tonight is key in the development of my reign. Tonight… TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE rises again!" 

            "Very well, Master." 

"And Barty?" 

            "Yes Master?" 

            "Unless you wish to have your spine removed through your anus, you'll start calling me Lord Voldemort, instead of Master. It aggravates me." 

            "Yes, Lord." 

            "You give me a migraine." Voldemort said, rubbing his temples with his long, spindly fingers. 

            "Of course, Lord." 

            "OUT!"

~~~~~

            "Draco." Ginny said, bringing her lips to his ears as she rode behind him on the broom. 

            "Yes?"  

            "It's been hours. When do we stop?" 

            "There's a village a few more hours from here. By early afternoon we will arrive." He said. 

            "I'm falling off the back here. I'm trying to hold on to you and Summer." 

            Draco slowed the broom and glided to the ground again. 

            "Here, sit in front of me." 

            "You'd enjoy that too much." 

            "I'm human, of course I will, but you don't really have a choice do you?" he sneered. 

            "You're a pig." 

            "And you're breathtaking." He shot back. 

            "Was that supposed to be an insult?" she laughed skipping off the broom. 

            "If you're smart enough to remember charms from fourth year, surely you can answer that question." 

            "You speak in riddles, how do I figure that out?" she asked. 

            "It's simple, Ginny. Didn't you take a class on relationships? Wait…you went to the Yule Ball with Longbottom, I forgot." He laughed as she placed herself between his legs in front of him, still cradling Summer in her arms. 

            "Yes, but Neville could spell his name, as opposed to Pansy who could only remember that she was named after a flower, so she wrote Daisy on half of her parchment rolls." 

            "You're harsh." Draco laughed. 

            "You're an ass." She replied. 

            "You're the one sitting between my legs." 

            "You're the one with snitches the sizes of raisins." She laughed.

            "What?" Draco replied, sailing up into the tree tops not in full vision but sailing between the brilliant green leaves. 

            "Snitches…raisins…" he thought. 

            "HEY! I just got that!" he yelled laughing. 

            "So you hung out with Crabbe and Goyle to make up for the fact that you're an idiot right?" 

            "Actually, I found them stunningly thought provoking." He replied. 

            "I hate you." she laughed. 

            Summer giggled madly in the air. Her tiny outstretched hands released tiny stars as she wiggled about Ginny's arms pleasantly. 

            "She's destined for Quidditch." Ginny smiled. 

            "The way those arms are going, I bet she's a Beater." He said. 

            Draco now had Ginny tight against his chest, little wisps of flaming red curls dancing against his cheek as they flew onward. His arms found themselves around her waist and still holding the broom. Yet, he loved it. He loved the feel of her against him. The sweetness of her body, the gentle tickle of her hair, and the way Summer giggled when the wind caught her the right way. This was the closest thing to a family Draco had ever felt, and he burned a promise on his that swore his life to protecting the two of them.


	5. Chapter Five - Ashes to Ashes

**_Authors Notes: hey hey hey! Are you guys enjoying this at all? I really hope so, I'm working hard - harder than I work at Subway. : ) I hope that idiot who yelled at me gets botulism from bad meat or something. Dork. Anyway, the story is unfolding pretty nicely. I wonder if Someone the First would be proud of me right now? Lol. I hope so. Please, continue to email me and talk to me as much as you'd like. I'm here to talk to. I don't want to be one of those authors who readers can't relate to, or talk to. I hope you enjoy this next chapter - for anyone who has an infatuation for Tom Riddle , you'll appreciate this next one. _**

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**_Once again Robyn - thank you… I know I either don't put enough comma's or too many but ya know…at least I try. I love ya, thanks for always picking apart all my hard work and tearing it to shreds! Lol! ; ) _**

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            "That's it!" Voldemort cried. "Bring me the book!" 

            Tom Riddle's journal lay before the cauldron, along with random artifacts presented by the Death Eaters.  He took a knife and cut the book until blood oozed into the cauldron. 

            "My most loyal of servants!" he shrieked. 

            Barty Crouch approached the sacrificial table and laid his arm out. With the same knife, Voldemort drew blood into the cauldron. Then, in a cold, frightened sweat, he cut his own arm... deep… until blood, so dark it almost took on a purple hue, flowed down his arm, onto his fingertips, into the cauldron. 

            "From the depths of time, 

            to the deaths of the future

            From the blood of the past

            to the new lineage of the morning..

            Bring back Tom Riddle 

            to rule, 

            to conquer

            to **_kill_**

            for all time." 

            He picked up the boiling liquid and flaming cauldron and brought it to his lips. He screamed with pain of the heat on his hands, and then choked on the boiling blood scarring his throat. Soon, his screams faded and the old, gray, weak version of Voldemort erupted into leaping black flames, and it burned for an hour until the fire extinguished itself; from the charred burns emerged young Tom Riddle…looking no older than twenty four year old Barty Crouch. 

            The two stood side by side. 

            "Master?" Barty asked, falling to his knees. 

            "Get up, Bart." Tom laughed, good coldly. "I'm back." 

            Tom Riddle wore a black, silk button up, collared, long-sleeved dress shirt and slightly baggy dark denim jeans. He reached up and unbuttoned the first three buttons of his shirt and then pushed up his sleeves, smirking. His jet black hair was slicked back on his head, and his glowing yellow eyes pierced the silence of the room. 

            "Ah, youth was so much kinder to me." 

            The room laughed softly. 

            "Do not be afraid! I'm back in my strongest form with the knowledge and experience of my older self, only in the body of my younger years. The females are much kinder to me in this form." He smirked. 

            "Restoreo!" he said, thrusting his hands out on Barty Crouch. 

            Suddenly, Barty Crouch's fair hair, freckles, boyish grin, and evil glint reappeared in his eyes, along with his muscular frame of his younger years. 

            "Now, I have granted you the gift of my pimping abilities. Use them well." Tom laughed. 

            "Down to business."  He said with cold joviality. "Where's that Divinator?" 

            "Still unable to be located, Sir. We're trying." 

            "Get him to me immediately. We will meet again early morning. Until then,  Barty and I are out to find some females…it has been far too long since…well….

anyway. We will rejoin at nine o'clock…WITH the Divinator."

~~~~~

            "There's the village!" Draco exclaimed as a large cluster of  tiny homes ranging in all shapes, sizes, and colors came into view. There were many people, all different looking specks from the air. Draco neared the area and landed stealthily behind a tree, trying to not disturb anyone or anything. The maple wiggled unsteadily as if knowing they were foreign to the area. Draco took Ginny's hand to help her dismount the broom, but she jumped off, holding Summer tightly against her and then landing smoothly, with grace. She looked at him, her ponytail at the nape of her neck allowing red waves to cascade over her shoulders; "Please, Malfoy, since when have you been a gentleman?" 

            "Maybe you never gave me a chance." He grumbled. 

            "Come off it. Anyway, I'm a big girl. I can handle myself." she smiled walking past him. 

            "Are you getting tired of  holding Summer?" he asked. 

            "No." Ginny said thoughtfully, "but…she is getting kind of squirmish. Let me think of a charm." 

            "Ginny, are you the Goddess of Charms? Should I be frightened?" 

            "Shut it, Malfoy. I'm concentrating." 

            "Oh, I wouldn't want to disturb you. Don't hurt yourself, Weasley." 

            "Go to hell." She whispered. 

            "Spank me." 

            "What?!" 

            "I don't know, if I'm going to hell might as well make it worth something." He laughed. 

            "Right-o." Ginny said. 

            They approached the village quietly, trying to not look belligerent or aggressive. The streets were all wide and a gentle pale brick pathway led it's entire way through the town. All the homes were small, of all different colors, and cozy. The most endearing concept of the town was that it seemed to just appear out of the forest, and yet, it did not disturb the woodland around it, but merely allowed itself to be consumed by it. The lush foliage around the town was a natural barrier, and gorgeous at that. The sky seemed pure and rich blue without a trace of tarnish or contamination. The forest seemed to hug the town, and neither destroyed the other. The forest offered protection, and the inhabitants looked as if they nurtured the land they had been blessed with. 

            "Oh! Sustainifidado!" Ginny said, sitting Summer on the ground near a patch of pansies and performing a charm on her. In an instant There was a faint outline of a glittering bubble around the child and now, she could walk or crawl freely without getting more than a foot out of Ginny's reach. 

            "How _did you do that!?" Draco said gaping at the infant, now giggling madly again and sprawling about the bubble. _

            "It's a simple charm, really." Ginny blushed humbly. "You see, the glitter indicates how small the area really is. She can't fall down, or hurt herself, but she can crawl or walk, even if she can't without it. The charm enables the muscles in her legs to comprehend the idea of walking but whenever I remove the charm, they will forget - that way I'm not harming her by forcing her muscles to do something they aren't ready for. And, she can't go more than a foot away from me, and …" she said, pausing for a breath, "she is bound to me, so no one can take her from a foot of me."  

            Draco stared at her, open mouthed. "Once again, allow me to reiterate the fact that you're such a genius, it scares me." 

            Ginny looked at him in explanation. "I worked with a young dolphin who had been separated from its parents at birth, and this charm had to be performed in order for me to teach it, all the basic principles of swimming without allowing the animal to drown. Without the charm, the dolphin would've died in a matter of days." 

            Draco continued to gape at her, as she continued on in her story. "It also occurred to me, that this could work for parapalegics in the Muggle world, but I suppose the day that the Muggles accept the reality that magic does exist, certain people will never walk again." 

            "Ginny, you're incredible." Draco said, as they entered the heart of the village. Suddenly a young woman, close to Ginny in age, neared them. Her skin was rich in color, a tan with a vivid orange sparkle tint to it. Her hair was a warm honey - but just as her skin - glazed over in a hue of glittering orange. Her eyes were very large and narrow with long flowing black eyelashes that barely permitted the color of her eyes to shine through, but when she said hello, her eyebrows rose high on her head, and her eyelids revealed deep purple pupils cheerful and warning all at the same time. Her body was oddly disproportioned her legs were incredibly thin and elegant with very slim, sloping calves. Her waist was the size of a waterbottle, yet, her arms and head were the same size of Ginny's. The most odd though, was the fact that she still was incredibly beautiful. She wore a purple gown, positioned around her body almost like a toga. One thin, glittering shoulder revealed, and one covered. The slit of the gown stopped abruptly below her upper thigh revealing much of her amazingly long, lean legs. Perhaps the most outstanding feature of her entire charisma was that she inhibited the wings of a dragonfly. Four, diagonal, thin, oval wings lay on her upper back, just below her shoulder blades. The magnificent wings were also a glittering light hue of purple, and fluttered slowly behind her as she neared them. 

            "Hello." She hummed. "Are you lost?" 

            "Hi, I'm Ginny. This is Summer, and Draco. We're actually fleeing." 

            "Lucius!" the creature hummed gleefully. "We thought you'd never return!" 

            She threw herself into Draco's muscular arms and kissed his cheek profusely. 

            "Lucius? No. Ma'am..No. Lucius was my Father." He said, as she tensed and eased away from him. 

            "Was?" she hummed sadly, her long lashes brushing her cheeks in curiosity. 

            "He was killed…by Voldemort." Draco said gently. 

            "Which is why we had to flee." Ginny said delicately. 

            "Voldemort is why your Father came here in the first place. Oh young Lucius, there is much you must know. I have much to say. Come. There is much to tell. So little you know. Oh. Lucius dead….oh.." she whispered, taking his hand and pulling him slowly into the village. 

            She pulled the pair into a small home with only three rooms. In the corner, near a window was a thin woman-creature, shaped the same as the guide who had brought them here. She stood, facing the sunlight with a warm smile on her face, and then she spotted Draco, and ran directly to him. 

            "Lucius!" she hummed loudly. She ran and jumped into Draco's arms, kissing him passionately, her glittering pink hands pressing his face closer to hers. 

            "No! I'm his son!" he shouted after he had managed to push her off him. "I'm so sorry. I'm Lucius' son. I'm sorry." 

             "Oh. Much too know. You need to know…so much. Oh…so much."  The other said. 

            "I Lena." Said the creature glittering orange in a purple toga. "This Magna. She my sister." Magna was the creature who had attacked Draco passionately, her skin was peach, but glittered pink, matching her toga and wings. Her eyes were magnificent and huge, glowing aqua. She had short cork screw blonde curls moving around her eyes.  

            "I very sorry. I just loved Lucius so much. You brought hope that he still alive. I fear he isn't." she said. 

            "No. He was killed by Voldemort." 

            "The very reason he was running to begin with." Magna whispered. "I feared as much." 

            "I don't understand." Draco said. 

            "I expected that you not. Come in, sit, this may be awhile." Magna said gently directing him to a green pouf, and sitting Ginny and Summer next to him in a blue one. 

            "Brewildadso." Magna whispered and a large tray of tea cups with tea landed before them. 

            "Now." Magna said kindly. "Down to business." 

            "Your Father came to us just under a year ago, when he fear that Voldemort regaining power under the eye of a highly powerful Divinator. He come to us, say "I beg of you. Find me that Divinator." We look years and years and no success. Then, he come back, nervous and scared. We fall in love, he visits every third day, sometimes every second, depending. I wait and I wait and no one come. I miss him. He tells us that he knows one day his son will come to us, and he give us instructions on what to tell you." Magna said softly. 

            "We give you this." Lena said quietly, entering the room with a mahogany box encrusted in rubies and emeralds. Draco looked cautiously at Ginny who was tickling Summer, and opened the lid. Within the box lay money….lots of money…more than he ever had known his Father to ever possess. 

            "What is this for?" Draco asked. 

            "He say "No reason, you need…I provide. I terrible Father to you, but I love you regardless, and I take care of you the way I always want to, after I gone. Use Well. Do not let Voldemort win. Use your own gift of sight." Lena whispered, as if recorded by heart. 

            "Oh…oh…Use my own gift of sight. I still don't understand." 

            "You will in time. Young Draco, your Father love you so much, he want to make sure you taken care of." Magna said, setting one of her long graceful fingers on his knee. There is a letter in there as well, but…you will find it when you need it." she smiled warmly. 

            "So there's a spell on it?" he asked. 

            "Yes." She smiled. "Are you anxious to leave?"  

            "No!" Ginny spat out. Then smiled sheepishly. 

            Magna smiled with warmth and compassion. 

            "We have place for you to stay. Upstairs is always empty. But it is late afternoon, we have dinner, then you retire?" Lena said, beaming. 

            "That is wonderful of you. Thank you so much." Ginny said appreciatively. 

            "There are no people like you, here." Lena said. 

            "What?" Ginny asked. 

            "What Lena mean, is that…no red hair here." Magna answered. 

            "Why?" 

            "Sign of utmost beauty - inside and out. Reserved for only Jesus." Lena answered. 

            "Jesus…as in Jesus Christ?" Ginny asked. 

            "Yes. God." Lena said. 

            "You all believe he had red hair?" Ginny smiled. 

            "Yes. Not like yours though. Brilliant warm red. Yours too bright. But your hair indicate that you are good person and good follower of God. It honor in our village."  Magna said 

            "Thank you." Ginny said…smiling kindly. 

            "Feel free to go explore. We start dinner." Magna said. 

            "You're sure we can't help?"  Ginny asked. 

            "You go. Much to see!" Magna said, smiling. 

            "You leave baby with me?" Lena said grinning childishly. 

            "Sure." Ginny smiled. 

            They entered the cool fall air and walked around the village admiring different shops, and people and scenery. They even walked to the top of a small hill and watched the fiery sunset fade into gentle pinks and blues before residing behind the hills for a sojourn.  They raced home, as childish as it felt, just because, after all they had just lived through, they felt they well deserved whatever glee they could muster. 

            They sped into the house, laughing merrily, and then helping set the table. Ginny and Draco took their seats and said Grace with the others before Draco and Magna launched into a deeper conversation. 

            "So, you and my Father were …..together?" he asked awkwardly. 

            Magna laughed with warmth and understanding: "Yes, and he was an excellent man. He spoke of you so much." 

            There was a deafening silence. 

            "Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Draco asked. 

            "Certainly not." Magna said, passing Ginny the pitcher of ice water. 

            "Why did he allow Voldemort to beat the life from me if he cared so much?" 

            After a long thoughtful pause Magna reached over and put one hand on Draco's knee. "Well darling, every parent makes mistakes, and the mistakes some adults make they are forced to live with eternally. Lucius secretly tried to save you, even though it seems he did nothing, he did not want to chance your life by saying too much.  He did grieve many a night over that though. He good man Draco. He not mean what happened to you." Magna said softly. 

            Magna reminded Draco of his ideal version of a mother, instead of his drunken, stuck up own. When dinner was finished he helped clear the table with Ginny before enveloping Magna into a huge embrace. 

            "Thank you so much." He said, and when he stepped back he noticed a large teardrop, not clear but large and made of completely pink glitter, sitting on her cheek. 

            "You all are amazing. I cannot thank you enough." Ginny said. 

            "Ginny? You leave baby with me? I play with her then put her to bed?" Lena asked. 

            Ginny pondered momentarily and then agreed, shortly after following Draco upstairs. There was a long narrow hallway with several different rooms, all with numbers. Their key said 486. 

            Draco struggled until he finally fit the thin golden key into the lock. When they entered he heard Ginny giggle beside him. 

            "What?" 

            "There's only one bed." She laughed. 

            "Is that a problem?" 

            "Not for me. You're the one sleeping on the floor." She grinned, skipping into the shower. When she emerged in her pj's, Draco was laying  to the far left of the bed with three pillows in the middle. 

            "See? Barrier. That way…no floor for either of us." he smiled. 

            "Fine, but I'm not Pansy Parkinson. You got that?" she asked, sliding under the covers and turning off the light beside her. 

            "She wasn't that bad."  Draco commented. 

            "Please Malfoy, that girl was the Hogwart's bicycle. Everyone got a ride." She laughed in the darkness. 

            Having Ginny so close to him was tempting, but he respected her territory and only laid his hand on her bare shoulder when he was sure she was asleep. She wore a thin strapped tank top and the sleeves kept sliding off her soft shoulders. He used this as an opportunity to touch her arms. He just wanted to be next to her. Damn the Love emotion….damn the feeling of love because it ruins the senses and steals sleep for fun. 


	6. If faced with forever....I would choose....

**_Authors Notes: Haha! No work for Aly today! I repeat I DID NOT WORK AT SUBWAY TODAY AND LIFE IS NOW GOOD. ; ) So, now as Robyn is pacing my room setting up the N-64…I'm thinkin' that maybe friendship is the only good thing about highschool. I mean, who remembers the dances, the basketball games, and *shudder* the pep rallies? That's right…no one. Except those warped people who plan the twenty year reunions that no one attends.  But, your friends, those select few that make the day worth getting through simply because of the laughter….yeah…that's my Robyn. So, with much love and laughter, this chapter is for Robyn. _**

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**_P.S. SCREW YOU ROBBIE! I can misuse punctuation all I want to in my Authors Notes! Muahahahaha! ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,;;;;;;;;;;;;;:::::::::::::::_**

**_P.S.S._**

**_My new fic "Slipping Through My Hands" is a short one about Hermione and Harry…PLEASE check it out. Much love!_**

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**_Chapter Six               _**

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**_            "Let me down in a field of dreams, flapping my wings trying to keep the breeze…and when I find you, I know you'll see you've grounded me in my field of dreams." _**

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**_            Ginny arose quietly, as usual. The sunlight was tiptoeing through the large window and easing it's gentle fingers across the covers where Draco slept. She went into the bathroom and washed her face, then brushed out her long wavy mane, before silently sitting on the edge of the bed and looking at him. _**

            If only her mother could see….she had slept next to Draco Malfoy. At the thought of her mothers sweet face, her stomach lurched. She glanced away from Malfoy and began to tick off the number of families Voldemort had ruined on her fingers. The Malfoy's. The Longbottom's. The Potter's. The Weasley's. The Diggory's. The Bourne's. Still silently she counted the people who had suffered so much because of his evil ambition….Harry, Draco, Sirius, Remus, Lily, James, Hermione, Neville…….why? Why did an entire society tremble at a name that had done nothing but destroy a world of hope? Didn't fearing him only justify his cause? Didn't shying away from topics he was associated with out of fear that his name would appear in conversation strengthen him? NO! 

            "VOLDEMORT! YOU COWARDLY BASTARD! VOLDEMORT!" She screamed, suddenly. 

            Draco moaned with a start, then rolled over. At first she sat motionless with shock at her sudden outburst, but then, she erupted into fits of giggles that she could not supress. Draco sat up and looked at her, questioningly. 

            "Something humourous in awakening a perfectly still human being?" he asked dryly. 

            "No…not at all. I'm so sorry." she said with a straight lined, prim mouth. She then exploded into childlike, blissful chuckles. 

            "I'm going to get a shower, maybe I'm still asleep, maybe that's why you seem so odd." He said in his cold drawl. 

            She still laughed as he walked into the bathroom and shut the door. Once she had calmed herself, she performed a charm on their clothes that instantly cleaned them. Afterall, she had no other clothes with her, might as well make the best of what you have. She buttoned her all of her silver buttons except for the top three, on her white, collared, dress shirt. Then, after pushing up the sleeves and brushing her hair one last time she retreated downstairs. 

            "Morning, Ginny." Magna said, smiling where she prepared breakfast. Ginny could only imagine what they would have for food. Lena was setting the table and Ginny followed behind her with glasses and silverware. Everything looked normal enough. 

            "Sleep well?" Lena asked in her broken tongue. 

            "Yes, very." 

            "How long you date Draco?" she asked frankly. 

            "Oh!" Ginny said through her laughter, "We are not dating, just good friends." she smiled. 

            Lena wrinkled her eyebrows as if she did not believe her or understand. 

"You love one another much, no?" 

            "I don't know." Ginny said quietly. Did she love Draco?

            "Why you not know? What keeping you from it?" Lena asked. 

            "Lena! You are being rude! Silence, go call Draco." Magna spoke sharply. 

            Lena's wings flitted with anger as she slowly retreated towards the upstairs. 

            "She respects you." Ginny said. 

            "I suppose so, but she need to learn when it is right time to talk, and not so right time." 

            Ginny smiled. "I would have answered her, had I known." 

            Magna brought food to the table, and looked at her knowingly. "Lucius told me all about the situation. Under your circumstances, I imagine it be very hard to love him. But, I know he love you…deeply. You be aware of that, Ginny."

            "What makes you think that?" Ginny said quietly. 

            "Well, Lucius tell me that Draco fight everyone in mansion to not kill you, or harm you. He even stand up to Voldemort himself, trying to save your life. That, and I suppose the obvious, he did not kill that baby." Magna said sweetly, motioning to Summer, asleep in a wicker crib across the room. 

            "Speaking of baby, she need daily food, and if you not mind,  I have just the thing." 

            "Mind?!" Ginny laughed. "I'm so blessed to have met you!" 

            Magna handed her a small purple, glittering wand. "Anytime you wave it, baby nourishment appear, I use all the time when I raising Lena. It very healthy. When Lena was born there was not much food for her, and we had little. This solution work wonders." She smiled again. 

            Ginny stood up and pulled her into her arms, wrapping her arms around her thin frame. "Thank you so much, for everything. You have been such a blessing." 

            Draco walked into the room, and sat down at the table after hugging Magna and accepting the cup of coffee she offered him. Ginny was shocked to see plates full of bacon, eggs, toast, jams, pancakes, waffles, ham, and fruit. Maybe they weren't so different afterall.  


	7. Chapter Seven What was it like? How did...

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**_Authors Notes: I'm posting like crazy…wow. Hey, feel free to check out any_**

**_of my short stories if you get a chance…they are nice if you don't want to_**

**_read a beastly chaptered thing. The plot thickens here, and pay close_**

**_attention to the little details, it'll all come together in the end. Much love to_**

**_all of you ~ Aly  _**

The Death of A Fallen Star 

_Will you love me until my heart stops? Will you love me until I'm dead?_

She found herself glancing at Draco frequently. She couldn't quite put her finger

on it, but it was something. His cool blue eyes seemed darkened. Something was

missing, or …something. Breakfast passed too quickly and before she knew it,

Lena was sadly handing over Summer and kissing Draco and her own cheeks,

goodbye. Ginny sat securely in front of Draco on the broom cradling Summer in

her arms. They were floating just five feet above the ground, the sun glowing

warmly on them and the patches of clear blue sky revealed through the lush 

greenery offering a new day.  

"You know, I missed her." Ginny said, tickling Summer's nose.  

"You won't believe this, but I honestly did too."  

"I bet she feels the same, after all, you saved her, Draco." Ginny said 

gently. "Thank you."  

"Don't thank me, Ginny. I don't deserve it." he said in a voice just above a 

whisper. 

"You certainly do." she said. 

"Damnit Ginny! Stop it! I'm a monster and you know it!" He said, bringing 

the broom to the forest floor and walking away resentfully.  

"No Draco, you stop it." she said calmly.  

"The hell with this. That monster killed my father, Harry, Hermione, your

parents, Fred, George, Angelina, he wanted to kill you. I almost killed Summer!

And here I am blaming him when the only person I have to blame is myself. I

could have gotten away, but no! I was a self centered worthless bastard and that

is the only reason why I didn't leave. I enjoyed the power! I wasn't a damn 

slave, I was willing there!" he screamed.  

"Draco…" she spoke gently.  

"Just shut up!" he screamed running up towards her and stopping just 

inches before her face. "Just stop pretending I'm a hero when all I am is a 

villain!"  

"I don't believe that." She said again.  

"Ginny! Just….UGH!" he yelled, his face now right on hers. His eyes were

glazes over, like a sick animal and he possessed a rage within him that seemed to

be radiating off his very skin. " I could kill you…right here! In the middle of this

blasted forest!" and by the look on Draco's face she thought he might.  

Ginny raised her hand up slowly, and with a gentle touch, she laid her

fingertips upon his cold, enraged, skin. Her eyes did not flinch, and her breath

did not falter. She stared right into his eyes and smiled a careful, small look of

peace.  

"Draco, you did not kill my family. He did. You had no choice but to stay

in that mansion. You had nowhere else to go, and you had practically been

raised to follow the dark arts." She said softly. "In our lives we will all face a

thousand different paths. Some will be rainy, some sunny, some windy, some

straight, some heart-wrenching, and some smooth-sailing, but those paths that

we choose in life distinguish exactly what comes next. You chose a hundred

wrong paths, but in the end, you found the right direction. It all leads to an end,

only now, yours is worthwhile." She pushed his light blonde hair behind his ears

and leaned forward to plant a tiny kiss on his frosted cheek.  

"Now, either you stay here and keep regretting, or you get back on that 

broom and help us find the way to Dumbledore."  

                      ~~~~~~~~~~ 

"She can't be found Master." Barty Crouch said in a low voice.  

Tom Riddle spun his fingers around in icy circles on his pant leg. "Listen, I have

to know what to do, and if I don't have her, I have nothing. Now GET ME 

THAT DIVINATOR!"  

"Master, there is nothing else we can do. We've looked everywhere. Contacted

everyone!"  

"Barty, let me make this very clear: Either you get me the Divinator or I use 

your head as a mantle piece."  

                      ~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Hey, Ginny….Ginny?" Draco asked, but it was too late. She and Summer were

now sleeping quietly against his chest as they flew over Hogsmeade. He landed

gently behind a tree and woke Ginny.  

"I…didn't mean to wake you…it's….just…I can't be seen…Ginny, they'll 

put me in Azkaban with no questions asked if they spot me.  

"Hold still."  

"What?"  

"Muyficaloriius!" she whispered.  

"Ginny!"  

"What?"  

"Can you at least TELL me before you go….go…what did you do to me?" 

he asked.  

"Your hair is now light brown, you have brown eyes and gold colored

glasses, and you weigh about fifty more pounds." She grinned while she patted

his round belly. 

"Ginny!" he demanded as she spun on her heels into Hogsmeade.  

"What now?!" she asked as he scurried up beside her. 

"I don't want to look like this." 

"Alright, then let me see if I can find an attractive corpse to take to 

Azkaban instead."  

"Point taken." And he fell silent.  

They came upon a small motel and checked in. The old man at the counter

smiled at Summer warmly before leading them to a small two bed room. The

beds were large with maroon comforters, garnished with sturdy gold rope thread

around the edges. The pillows were large, and overstuffed, sitting neatly against

dark mahogany headboards that matched the other furniture in the room.  

"Nice choice." Draco said.  

"It was luck." She answered, grinning as she flopped down on the cozy

comforter, pulling her legs underneath her as she gently tossed Summer slightly

above her fingertips.  

"Let's take a short nap and then try to come up with a plan. I'm 

exhausted." Draco said, brushing his hair back with his hand.  

"That sounds wonderful." With that, Ginny laid back against her pillows

and closed her eyes, but it was only momentarily. Since Ginny had been a very

small girl she had developed the habit of thinking too much. She laid there,

contemplating everything that she had to look forward too. She was staring at

the ceiling, but in her eyes, she was watching a silent movie move before her.

She found herself focusing on how her family had died, and even though the

tears clouding her eyes eventually interrupted her movie she still persisted.  

"Draco?" she asked, slicing through the silence.  

"Hmm?"  

"How did my parents look again?"  

"Oh Ginny, the last thing I want to do is upset you." Draco answered, 

sitting up slowly and bringing his knees to his chest.  

"Tell me." she said firmly.  

"They were dead. Warm skin but lifeless. They looked still, and shocked, 

and …in pain." He whispered.  

"What about Harry and Hermione?"  

"Ginny…."  

"Just answer."  

"Well, I think my spell had just begun to wear off whenever Voldemort

was casting his. They still looked happy, laughing, still as stone, but full of life. It

was terrifying."  

"How long does your spell last?" she asked.  

"Until I give the countercurse…why?"  

"Draco……"  

"What?"  

"They looked frozen…" 

"Oh my ……Oh…Ginny…..Oh!" Draco exclaimed grabbing his broom and 

following Ginny who was now sprinting towards the train station.  


	8. Abandon all Judgments

**_Authors Notes: I know, I know…it's been months… but I promise.. I'm finishing this one… just follow the plot closely. Much Love to you all. _**

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**_Disclaimer: Hmm…not mine..never mine…only the pieces of my personality that I give the characters belong to my mantra._**

**_Dedication: Robyn…this is for you. I'll miss you this summer. Hannah – thank you so much for always waiting up to read my stuff and just offering your all to me all the time. Zane – you inspire me, you teach me, you believe in me… I can never truly repay you. _**

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**_Chapter Eight – Abandoning all Judgment_**

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**_            "_"I still don't understand, I erase every thought, every word, everything... You're watching my heart bend, your thoughts are cold, your words are pain, but still you're my everything"**

Every step felt like miles, and Ginny was not prepared for the sight before her when they arrived. Then again, what can prepare one for death? Is there a book you can read that can direct your grief? Certainly not. Death is a life process, and there is absolutely no escaping it. You cannot run from Death - ignore Death - fight Death - or even question Death. It can lurk behind dark corners, or stand out boldly on a bustling street corner. Regardless, the end is the end. 

When the faces came into focus Ginny's heart lurched forward uncertainly. It was very late when they arrived, yet they were still forced to hide in the shadows before all the Ministry employees left. 

"You mean they haven't moved the bodies yet?!" Ginny said in a whispered cry. 

"Ginny, the Ministry has to investigate, and afterall….they don't know you're alive. Who is there to rush for? And I can only imagine how scared everyone is, with Harry being gone and all. Everyone is probably crying about the end of the world." Draco said gently. 

When the Ministry members had tearfully left the Burrow, Ginny emerged - her footsteps fearfully light and slow. She approached her Mother and Father first. They laid still and cold, and still…despite all the pain, she could not bring herself to look away. Their bodies….frightening as they were….somehow still reached her. There was her Father…laughing, merry in her memories, holding her hand, helping her ride a broom…her mother….worried in a joyful way….teaching her how to cook, helping her clean her room, talking to her about her life at Hogwarts….why did they have to go? Why does anyone?

Then Fred, George, and Angelina…. Angelina's long dark curls laying about her head angelically. Fred and George still looked merry and having a good time. There were so many things she never got to say to them…so many thank you's left unsaid, so many times she wished she had back, so she could just say "I love you, you lunatics." But that was all gone…and her moments had been stolen. 

Ron….. 

"NO!" Ginny screamed, falling to her knees and laying her head upon his chest. She desperately wrapped her arms around his lifeless frame, and heaved with tears so deep and cruel her cheeks felt aflame with tears. She was shocked at how it felt to not feel the rise and fall of his breathing between her arms. No….

Draco helplessly watched her grieve, one by heart wrenching one, over her family. She held Ron for a long while, and he finally stepped over to her with such caution one would have thought her a piece of thin glass. He gently laid his hand on her face. 

"Ginny. Let's go look at Harry and Hermione. Ron wouldn't want you to do this…" he whispered, and she remorsefully released her grasp on him. Ginny noticed he wore the ring she had bought him as a graduation present just years prior. She quietly slid it off his finger and onto her own. 

"I love you." she whispered, kissing her brothers cheeks. "I love all of you." she cried, addressing all around her. Slowly, she made her way to Draco, who was crouched beside Harry and Hermione. They were clutching hands, frozen in a fit of giggles. 

"I can't look at them." Draco said quietly. "It's surreal, they aren't alive, but still laughing." 

Ginny knelt beside them, allowing her fingertips to brush against Hermione's flushed cheek. The headlights of a Ministry car were flashing in the distance. 

"Draco! Get Harry, Summer, and then hold my hand. Disapparate us back to the hotel. Now!" she yelled, as he rushed to her directions. 

"Ginny, we can't take corpses with us…please." 

"Do it!" she shouted. 

With much desperation he clutched her hand and held Harry in his arms. 

~~~~~~~~~~ 

They landed securely in the darkened hotel room. She rushed to turn on lights, and then positioned the bodies on the beds. 

"You're really frightening me." Draco said. 

"Do the countercurse." She demanded. 

"Ginny, do you know what they will look like if I perform the counter-curse!?" he yelled. 

"Do it!" she yelled, cornering him. 

"No. I won't put you through that!" 

"Damnit Draco, if you don't do it I'll report you to the Ministry right now!" 

"For a crime I didn't commit?!" 

"Where the hell is your proof?" 

"Ginny, I would rather rot in Azkaban than let you put yourself in any more pain." 

"Do it." she said firmly, then spun on her heels to face the bodies. 

"Remundio Livaidum." He whispered regretfully. 

  
Hermione was the first to stir. At first they both remained still as stone and Draco turned his head in shame. Then, as if a Divine hand had somehow warmed Hermione's heart, she sat straight up, her cheeks flushed with laughter, but her body was cold and rigid. She opened her eyes wide, the warm cinnamon color finally meeting with a pair of tear-filled emerald eyes. 

"Ginny?" Hermione whispered. 

"Mione!" Ginny cried, rushing to her and urgently wrapping her arms about her neck and sobbing whole heartedly onto her shoulder. 

"Gin…don't cry." Harry Potter whispered, running a hand through her hair. 

"Harry!" she said, crying harder. 

"I have a headache." Hermione said wearily, holding her head. 

Draco uneasily shifted his weight across the room. 

"Malfoy?" Harry said bitterly. 

"Pleasure to save your life too, Potter." Draco hissed. 

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked. 

"Oh…oh…" Ginny wept, "Everyone is gone…everyone….Voldemort… killed…..everyone…oh…..Mom…..Dad…..Ron…..Fred….George….Angelina.." 

"What?!" Hermione asked, now on the verge of hysterics. 

"Voldemort blew up the Burrow." Draco said. 

"That was tactful, Malfoy. Thanks for that assessment." Harry said. 

Ginny carefully explained every last detail that had occurred since she had left the Burrow, yet when she reached the present happenings, neither Harry nor Hermione could believe that Draco had saved them….had tried to save them all. 

"So, Voldemort thinks I'm dead?" Harry asked. 

"Life sucks, huh Potter?" 

"Malfoy, if your mouth doesn't shut soon I'll help you." Harry said bitterly. 

"And Harry's baby is supposed to be the downfall of Voldemort…so he is now fearlessly rising in power and followers who now believe hope is lost." Ginny said. 

"Easier to live a coward then die a hero, I suppose." Hermione mused, her fingertips finding Harry's. He held her hand tightly, then felt her jolt beside him. 

"Ron?" she said loudly; looking from Ginny to Draco. 

Ginny began sobbing helplessly into Draco's shoulder. 

Hermione's skin faded to resemble a cloudy day, and her eyes began overflowing. "Oh…oh…no." Harry pulled her into his arms, and she wept on his shoulder. "Not Ron…oh Harry!" she whispered loudly in one breath. "What happens from here?" she said, asking everyone around her. 

"We have to work together. Do we want the world to know Harry is alive?" Ginny asked, sitting down on the bed across from them. 

"By the way…how on earth did you figure out we were alive?" Harry questioned. 

"Ginny did it." Draco said quietly. " She figured it all out. I would have never returned." He said, looking down. 

"Draco," Hermione said gently. "You rescued everyone's body from the home. You did far beyond what was expected of you." 

And then all that was left to do was smirk, because Draco did not know how to smile.


End file.
